Eishi Combat Zero
by KodokSangar
Summary: "Yo, Buddy. Still Alive?" After the Raid of Avalon Dam, 'Demon Lord of the Round Table' must fight the one he call best friend. However, he will do anything to protect what he believe in. Oneshot.
EISHI COMBAT ZERO

ISAF Frontline, Delarus, Usea  
November 12th 2005

"Oh, _him_?" An unknown man said. He wore a jacket with ISAF insignia and holding an AK-47. "Yeah, I know him. It's gonna take a while. It happened years ago."

"Did you know there are three kinds of aces? Those who seek strength, those who live for pride, and those who can read the tide of battle," He told his interviewer.

"Those are the three. And him…he was a true ace," He said with a smile.

" _He was a TSF pilot they called 'Solo Wing Pixy'. He was the colleague of the man I seek."_

" _Ten years ago…"_

* * *

Avalon Dam, Principality of Belka  
December 31st 1995, After Operation Point Blank

"Now the war is finally over!" The Galm number 2, Patrick James 'PJ' Becket cheered through the radio. He made some fancy acrobatic maneuver with his F-16C Fighting Falcon TSF before returning into formation beside his flight leader's TSF, a grey and blue colored F-15J/Type-89 Kagerou.

It was several minutes after the joint assault by Allied Forces to stop the terrorist organization, A World With No Boundaries from firing the G-Bomb tipped V2 missile. The 'Demon Lord of the Round Table' AKA Cipher managed to enter the Dam and destroyed the launch control facilities, thus stopping the weapon from being fired.

However, it costs all of the Allied Forces TSFs, save for the Ustian Army's 66th Armored Unit, Galm –and AWACS Eagle Eye from afar.

Galm 1 sighed in relieve and leaned back into his seat, relaxing the muscle inside his Fortified suit. He smiled a bit as he saw the young TSF pilot flashed him a cheerful grin through the comms.

"I got a girlfriend back at the base. I'm gonna propose to her when I get back!" He showed him a bundle of flowers he just bought. "I even bought flowers!"

The usually silent mercenary chuckled lightly before his HUD flashed a warning signal.

"Warning! Unknown target approaching at high speed! Break! Break!" Eagle Eye reported.

Cipher checked his radar and saw red mark heading towards them in their 12 o'clock. He tightened his grip on the flight sticks.

 _ZAP!_

Suddenly, a flash of crimson red headed straight his way. However, he barely has any time to react.

"AH! DANG IT!" PJ suddenly maneuvered his TSF in front of Cipher's, blocking the laser, which struck the center of his mech, evaporating the engine, and the pilot himself.

"PJ!" Cipher shouted, contacting his wingman but his signal already lost. He helplessly watched the young pilot's F-16 blazed in fires before it hit the ground and exploded. "Damn it!" He cursed, hitting the side of his cockpit. He closed his eyes. "This is Galm 1…Galm 2…is down."

"So…" Hearing a familiar voice on the comms, Cipher wide opened his eyes. Then a man with brown hair and eyes appeared on his HUD. "Have you found a reason to fight yet?"

" _Buddy?"_

* * *

" _Without beginning or end, the ring stretches into the Infinite."_

* * *

"Confirmed reactivation of G-bomb silo! Galm team, continue your mission. Engage!" AWACS Eagle Eye ordered.

Chiper saw his target on the HUD. An unknown TSF, 30 miles away…and being piloted by his former wingman, Larry 'Pixy' Foulke. He gritted his teeth. "Roger that! Galm 1, Engaging!" He responded coldly before punching his Jump Unit forward and readied his AMWS-21 Assault Cannon.

Both ace TSF pilots charged heads on. As Pixy opened fire with the Laser Rifle, Cipher evaded it by banking hardly to the right before accelerated to him and fired several 36mm and a 120mm armor-piercing high explosive round which hit the Solo Wing. He surprised to see it did nothing but scratched it.

"Standing by, we're analyzing the situation," Eagle Eye stated as he started to analyze Pixy's mysterious TSF.

As the snow began to fall…

"Here comes the snow…" Pixy said.

It was kinda ironic. The first time both of them fight together was during snowy day. And now, they fight each other when the sky filled with snow. However, it was a battle. Pixy won't show mercy on his former flight lead and so did Cipher. In this battle, one of them might be a dead man.

"Shoot down the enemy, I'll run a TSF analysis and fill you in ASAP!" The AWACS said.

Cipher silently nodded before pursued Pixy through the sky. He aimed his Assault Cannon and fired but none hit their target. Pixy countered by firing the TLS even though he know Cipher can evade them easily, as easy as when he evaded the laser from Excalibur, a Belkan Secret Super Weapon which then controlled by the BETA after their attack on Tauberg, forcing the Allied Forces to destroy it.

"Those who survive a long time on the battlefield start to think they are invincible," Pixy said before firing another laser, this time hit Cipher's Kagerou on the right waist.

Cipher checked his HUD for damage. 'DMG 10%' it reads.

"I bet you do too, buddy..." Pixy replied as he turned around for another attack. Before he got too far, Cipher sprayed Pixy's TSF with rounds which hit him.

As Cipher pursued him, he began to think about what Pixy said. He did feel that every time he faced his enemies –BETA or human- he felt that he was the strongest, but he never think about that. He knew sooner or later he is going to be defeated. He even starting to think how its feel when BETA chewed his body. But those times never comes. He always survived, either because of mere luck, his own skill, or his destiny that keep him alive.

Cipher put that thought away, focusing to take down his enemy. Finally, Pixy turned around and fired his Laser again. It barely hit him as Cipher kicked in the afterburner and did high G barrel roll, closing their distance.

Cipher reloaded his assault cannon and checked his armament. Only 4 standard missiles and 5 XMAAs left. For his gun, he only has less than 3 mags and 4 120mm shells left. The fight with the Wizard squadron and the Avalon Dam's AAs did depleted most of his ammo. That's why he needed to conserve it.

After Pixy stopped the laser fire and with their distance closed in, Cipher pushed the launch button. "Galm 1! Missile launched!" He shouted as 2 missiles and an XMAA was fired from the Kagerou's shoulders.

Noticing the incoming missiles, the Solo Wing Pixy shielded himself with the TSF's right hand, which held the 'Zoisite' TLS. Thanks for the over-heated Laser Rifle the heat-seeking missiles targeted it instead of the TSF. Pixy dropped the laser and took a spare XAMWS-24 Advanced Multiple Weapon System from its pylon.

"Phase 1 analysis complete!" Eagle Eye started. "Transmission from enemy mecha detected. He's controlling the V2 launch!" Cipher knew it, this was only a distraction.

Both of them closed their distance, hovering several hundred meters from each other. Both TSFs were like glaring at each other, pointing their Assault Cannon on their target. Cipher also got a good look on the mech. It has notable similarity with Yuktobania's Su-47 Berkut but this craft has much more bulky Jump Unit and legs. It was painted in gray with half of its wing-like shoulder painted in red.

"Cipher, I know you have a lot of things to ask, didn't ya?" Pixy asked him.

"Why did you do this, Solo Wing?" Cipher asked him grimly.

"Can you see any borders from here? What has borders given us?" He asked softly. Cipher sighed and let him continue. "We're going to start over from scratch. That's what V2 for. I WILL change the world…"

Cipher closed his eyes before opened it again. "If it's your answer…I will stop you!"

"Come on, shut me down!" Pixy shouted as he accelerated away. Cipher locked him on his sight but the missile warning alert caught him off guard. He flew backward and opened fire on the missile but to his surprise it caused a huge explosion that damaged his Eagle and destroyed the Assault Cannon.

"Gah!" He grunted as the damage turned to 88%.

"Galm 1!" The AWACS cried.

"I'm okay," Galm 1 stated as he chased Pixy from behind. "Galm 1! Fox 3!" He shouted as he fired his remaining XMAAs one-by-one. Pixy saw the missiles trailing behind him and fired another Hyperthene Multi-Purpose Burst Missile.

"This isn't over, buddy! This is where it all starts. You know what I'm talking about, right?" Pixy said as he watched the MPBM explode, catching Cipher's XMAAs in the blast.

However, it was part of the Demon Lord's plan. He easily evaded the MPBM blast. He saw Pixy passed in front of him. With his Type-74 PB Blade on hand, he slashed Pixy's TSF back, disabling the MPBM launch platform.

Pixy then drew a beam saber and attacked his former flight lead in close range. "There's no mercy in war. People live and people die. That's all there's to it…"

"Is that justified your act for killing PJ?!" Cipher growled. Both of them engaged it sword fight. They slash, cut, and stab each other without mercy. "We are in desperate war for existence, Pixy! BETA has killed millions of peoples! Do you want to add more death tolls?!" After exchanging lot of blows, both of them backed away.

"We need to sacrifice hundred peoples to save millions more," He finally lost it.

"Buddy, do you hear the crackling on my transmission? It's the noise made by my blood vessels as they pop. RIGHT NOW, I'M ANGRIER THAN I'VE EVER BEEN!" He shouted out his frustration. Cipher then charged Pixy head on, who readied his blade to block anything he threw at him.

Both their blades clashed again. The TSFs pushed each other until both of them backed away. Thanks to his TSF agility, Pixy counterattacked faster than Cipher. Cipher clashed the laser beam before drawing his CIWS-1A Combat Knife, amputating the TSF's right hand.

Pixy caught off guard by his unpredictable attack and fired his cannons, one in his left hand and another on the back pylon. Cipher forced to drop his halberd but managed to evade and back away, getting hit with several rounds of course. 'If he hit me just once again, I'm finished!' He thought as he bit his lips.

"It's time…" Pixy finally said. Cipher heard rumbling sounds from the ground and saw his greatest horror.

"Dammit! Confirmed launch of V2!" Eagle Eye reported. Cipher watched Pixy hovering in front of him with the huge, fearsome V2 missile rocketed to the sky.

"Too bad, buddy… This twisted game needs to be reset. We'll start over from 'zero' with this V2 and entrust the future to the next generation," Pixy sighed sadly.

"Larry…"

"This is AWACS! Listen up, Galm 1! We've completed analysis of the enemy TSF. Codename: Morgan. This TSF is protected by an ECM defense system. It's ONLY weak point is in the front air intakse on its legs. You'll have to attack it head on or in close range. GO! Take down Morgan! You're the only one who can stop him," Cipher nodded as he saw Pixy signal changed from 'Unknown' into 'ADFX-02'. "'Demon Lord of the Round Table'…I pray for your success!"

As Eagle Eye finished, Cipher ignited his Jump Units, charging Pixy head on. 'I Gotta make this count!' He thought, glancing to his ammo storage which only has 2 missiles left.

"You and I are opposite sides of the same coins…" _BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!_

"When we face each other, we can finally see our true selves…" _Lock on!_

"There may be resemblances but we never face the same direction…" _Fox two! Fox two!_

The Kagerou fired its last remaining missiles toward the Morgan. Pixy managed to intercept the first missile with his XAMWS-24 but the second one struck his left air intakes.

Pixy pursued him from behind, firing his cannon toward Cipher who evaded it before firing back.

"V2 re-entry at 4 minutes!" Eagle Eye reported.

The Morgan and Kagerou then turned back as far as possible before both turned around and charged each other in an extreme jousting game.

Both TSFs charged each other in full speed. Their TSFs trained their guns, ready to fire at any time.

"V2 re-entry at 3 minutes!" Eagle Eye reported again.

"Fire away! Coward!" Pixy taunted. Both of them fired their guns at the same times before passing each other, but none hit their targets.

"V2 re-entry at 2 minutes!" Eagle Eye now sounded panicked. Both flew as far as before then turned around again for another round. Neither pilot had a good angle of attack.

"COME ON!" Pixy screamed. Both TSF put enough distance from each other before turned around again. Seeing the ranged guns attack did little effects, Cipher changed his plan.

"The V2 has reentered the atmosphere! This is your last chance to take him down!" AWACS warned for the last time.

"SHUT ME DOWN! CIPHER!" As the Morgan aimed him again, the Kagerou flew in lower altitude. Cipher closed his eyes as his TSF tightened the grip on the CIWS-1A knife…And right as he opened them…

Finally…Everything goes into slow motion…

Pixy caught off guard and pulled the trigger while his enemy who was on his dead angles speed up before wreck Morgan's right air intakes…

* * *

After that, Cipher was unable to process what happened, due to the G force and quick event.

Cipher looked behind at the short burst of explosion coming from Morgan and watched it fall to the ground. He barely focused on the immense explosion of the V2 which exploded in the sky. He flew lower to the Morgan's crash site.

* * *

Pixy opened his eyes as the light slowly faded. He watched an Ustian Army F-15J/Type-89 TSF, piloted by the only one he call ' his buddy' hovered in front of him. He saw its weapon was aimed toward him. He was too exhausted and weak to escape. This is it.

" _It should've been better if I died that day…"_ The Solo Wing smiled bitterly. He waited his friend to end this traitor, backstabbing SOB.

"Mission accomplished, Cipher!" The AWACS congratulated him. "Come on, let's go back home. We wouldn't want to keep anyone waiting for you."

Wordlessly, Cipher retracted his AMWS-21 and flew away with AWACS Eagle Eye's E-767. _"But I didn't."_

"Why didn't you…kill me?" Pixy asked weakly before chuckled. "So…this is your reason…to fight?"

* * *

The flashback ended and now, Pixy was back in Delarus.

"I dragged my wounded body and reached ground zero of the G-bomb detonations…" Pixy sighed, turning his gaze away. "A barren, empty land. I felt an unbearable sadness when I witnessed that landscape."

"I heard there were still a few surviving BETA in that land and I think I would be their supper," He chuckled a bit. "However, there were still people living there. They were the ones who saved me."

"It may be true that in this dying world we don't need borders but…would get rid of them really change anything?" He leaned back to his seat, recalling what he thought that day. "My stupid act caused me to kill PJ, the wide-eyed kid who barely pass twenty, and if Cipher didn't stop me, I would kill thousands more and be labeled as a mass murderer in history."

"After he shut me down, I realized something…The world won't change for better and we can't get rid of the BETA unless we trust each others. Trust is vital in peaceful world…but that will never happen," The former TSF pilot tightened his grip on the AK. "If I didn't betray him that day, we would have kicked those aliens assess out of Belka instead I give them a chance to conquer Osea continent."

He paused a while before continued. "I'm now in the frontline…Even with the BETA invasion, border clash sometimes commenced between two factions here. I want to see myself what borders really mean and if we really need them in this war. I may not find what I'm looking for but I still wanna try…"

"Anyway, that's what I've come to believe and I think that's enough," The Solo Wing Pixy concluded.

He then leaned forward. "Will he see this video? If you do meet him, give him a message for me," He requested.

As the camera zoomed in on his face, Larry smiled brightly. _"Yo, Buddy. Still alive? And thanks friend. See you again."_

* * *

 **This is codename: KodokSangar, reporting in!**

 **Thank you for reading my first-ever Ace Combat & Muv-luv crossover. At first, I was about to set this story during the liberation of Directus from Gelb 2's POV(I'm thinking to write another story about this). But I changed my mind after I watched Schwarzesmarken. TFS vs TFS battle is much cooler, yes? I also remembered something, 'there's no happy ending in Muv-Luv' so the Galm's fight kinda fit it.**

 **By the way, I think BETA wouldn't want to invade Strangereal, unless they are drunk -remind me of that Ace Combat x Independence Day meme. I mean the aces already deadly with their aircraft and now think what they can do with TSF. They might be unstopable(because of the gameplay). Not mentioning their Super Weapons(Excalibur, Arkbird, SOLG, etc) can give those aliens lot of pains in the assess.**

 **I'm going to write another Ace Combat x Muv-luv crossover story with longer chapters. However, this one set in the Alternative universe after Operation Ouka. I will appears the characters from the Alternativ-verse and the ace combat characters from 'real world', let just say from Infinity, Assault Horizon, and Joint Assault.**

 **In this story, Cipher piloted a Kagerou instead of Eagle 'coz I didn't know if F-15C can be equiped with Halberd and also for maximum Muv-luv style. The F-15C also has lot of similarity with Type-89, I can't even tell the differences if it's has the same paint. By the way, who give a fuck about that. Peoples can fly whatever the hell they one as long as it can kick ass. But for me in AC0, _EAGLE LEAD DA WAY MADAFAKA!_**

 **Don't forget for the reviews guys, I love them(flames too).**

 **Auf wiedersehen! *DDR intensifies***


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